Sound and Silence
by penchou
Summary: There's a stark contrast between the welcoming sound of Petra's piano playing and the deafening silence when she's not there. [winterrw2018 Day 1 Alternative: - Silence]


When Levi comes home it is to the welcoming sound of music playing, the familiar piece echoing among the living room from where Petra is blissfully drowning herself with her peaceful yet enchanting piano music. Her fingers pressing down on the keys with precise and graceful movements, as if she already knows where to press; bright and warm eyes closed and head slightly waving to the beat, letting herself get lost in the moment.

Levi does not walk away, nor does he move in place. He could not dare to bring himself to stir from the spell that she has cast on him. When Petra plays the piano, it is almost like she had bewitched him to not turn away, to always watch with dutiful eyes and always listen. Listen and let himself get woven into the world that Petra has magically and beautifully created in her pieces.

Which is the reason why Levi has been drawn to the woman form the start. It all started with music –with a story she likes to call it, A story that no matter what tune it sounds like or takes to be, it is more often than not a beckoning. An invitation of sorts, and it is what had led Levi to his now wonderfully loving wife.

When the last note hangs in the air – one that Petra always make sure that it sounds like that there'll be more that it is not exactly the end – Levi didn't notice that he had shut his eyes closed halfway through the spectacle, and opened them to find amber ones staring back at him.

"I'm home." He says in late greeting.

Petra beams at him and Levi closes the distance between them to give her a light peck on her forehead, returning the embrace when he feels slender arms wrap around his shoulders trying to pull him downwards to her.

"Welcome home." She greets back, and he could not agree more.

* * *

It is late when he arrives home, the early recesses of sunset bleeding on their curtains with red hues coloring the floor already darkening upon his entrance to his home.

He is tired. Exhaustively so.

Levi drops his things on the couch before heading towards the kitchen. He might be tired after a hard day's work worth of making sure that all the deliveries Erwin had scheduled were done and made, but he is not sleepy in the slightest.

Grabbing his favorite mug, a birthday gift from Petra on their first year of dating, he prepares himself a cup of coffee. Black and bitter enough to keep him awake for the next two hours or so. Levi has to resist the urge to spit back the liquid when he takes his first drink, forcing the coffee down his throat.

It tastes like shit.

He saunters his way to their living room and plops down on the couch, making sure that the coffee won't spill on the couch's sheets. It's hard to wash those stains away.

Letting himself get immersed in his drink, leaning his head back on the couch, Levi almost misses the glint reflecting from the golden lamp propped on an old but black and smooth surface, its black and white keys hidden beneath the white wool he had covered them from long ago.

He tries not to stare at the object much longer because he knows if he does, an image of a woman with the same golden hair sitting on a stool, happily playing the instrument she had so loved, would appear on the forefront of his mind. And he does not like remembering the bittersweet things.

Sighing, he stands up, leaves his half-empty mug on the sink to be washed later – he does not feel in the mood to clean – and goes to his, _their_ , bedroom where he'd sleep. Alone and cold in the night.

He lies down on the left side of the bed, a habit of his since she would always take the right, and turns his head to the right, expecting to see and feel the warmth radiating from his usual bedmate but only gets disappointed to find none; his heart thundering painfully in his chest. Somehow, he feels like everything has gotten bigger and lonelier.

"I'm home." He whispers to the dark.

And he tries to ignore the haunting silence that comes afterwards.


End file.
